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Open House Spotlight
Open House Spotlight features listings holding open houses for the upcoming weekend. For this week? We turn our focus to 2706 S Grant in South Arlington.
Another weekend, another open house!
And this weekend The Andors Group is hosting a beautiful 5 bed, 4 bath home located in South Arlington. Located just 10 minutes from the nation's capitol, 2706 S Grant offers the benefit of a short commute along with the opportunity of living in a close knit, active community. Priced at $1,049,000, this home is the ideal spot for a family looking to live in South Arlington.
Let's hop into the highlights!
Tons of Natural Light
I'm not sure about you, but I love it when a home has natural light. There's something about being able to wake up in the morning and not even have to hit a single light switch as you start your day. Instead, you get to meander to the kitchen for breakfast and be allowed to greet the day with ease.
I love the amount of skylights that cross the ceiling of this sunroom. It allows the sun to pour directly into the room, rarely making you ever need to turn on the lights. Plus, I'd love to be able to stargaze from inside my house.
Even the living room has ample amounts of sunlight!
While this room may not have any skylights, it has a massive window on the front of the house that faces the northeast. So not only do you get to start your mornings with morning sun, but you get to enjoy it for the entire day.
The best part? The home is on a hill, meaning that you can leave the curtains open without people peering through as they walk by. Talk about privacy!
The Updated Bathrooms
While it's nice to live in a neighborhood as historic as Arlington, living with bathrooms built decades ago can be a hassle. So what do you do? Do you move to a newer neighborhood with cookie cutter homes or do you choose to have a home with character and sacrifice the bathroom of your dreams?
Well, what if I told you that you could have the best of both worlds?
The previous owners of 2706 S Grant have put their heart and soul into some of these renovations and I personally think it's paid off tenfold. Updated from top to bottom, there isn't an inch of this space that feels outdated. Rather, it's developed into a space that simultaneously maintains the original character of the home while also keeping with the times.
It's got great lighting, a phenomenal choice in backsplash that leads into the bath, and a beautifully updated shower. I also love the cabinetry on the sink. The colors match so well together and it's a type of design that will hold up for years to come.
Here's another quick example of some of the renovations done to the home's bathrooms. While I lean towards liking the first one (what can I say, I'm a lover of a deep brown color palette) this second bathroom has also done a great job of staying contemporary without sacrificing the soul of the home.
Again, I love the tile choice, the bathroom has great lighting, and in the top left corner you can see some of the updates done to the shower. It's the small things in life, and having a detachable showerhead definitely falls into that category.
A Backyard You Can Use
If you're not from South Arlington, then you may not know of one of the biggest obstacles to building homes in the area: the hills.
Everything else about the neighborhood is great. The schools are some of the best in the country, the neighbors are active in the community and everyone knows each other's names, and you can make it to D.C. without hitting a single traffic light. It's why prices have been steadily rising for the past several decades and will likely continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
That said, a flat backyard is definitely hard to come by in the area. That's why when a property comes onto the market that leans into the shape of the landscape to create a functional space, it becomes the hottest home in the neighborhood.
And let me tell you, this home checks all those boxes.
Previous homeowners have constructed a patio and a retaining wall, creating a level outdoor space for your friends and family to spend time outside. It has room for a fire pit and if you look in the back, you can even see a grilling station where you can spend your weekends cooking food for the family.
Along with that, the retaining wall allows you to keep green space in your backyard. While it's not necessarily a need for your home, it's definitely a welcome sight to be able to look out your window and be able to see some nature. Plus, check out those trees! You can only find trees that size in areas with history. So if you love nature as much as I do, this is the neighborhood for you.
My favorite part of the yard might be the treehouse (though that may be my inner child talking). While there are several phenomenal parks in Arlington, there's something about your kids having their own space that means so much. Plus, wouldn't it be nice to get your kids outside without having to take them to the park? While I love being outside as much as the next guy, it would be nice to just have them go out back rather than taking them to the park every time they needed to get some exercise.
Interested in touring the home? Stop by our open houses this weekend from 1-4pm this Sunday to check out 2706 S Grant in person!
Not able to make it at those times? Or maybe you'd prefer to tour the homes without the crowds? Schedule a private showing here to check out the home in person!
Just Listed
James Andors of The Andors Real Estate Group shares his insight into the local market
Good morning Arlington. As always, thanks for keeping up with the Just Listed column. We aim to keep you in-the-know with how our Arlington real estate market is performing week over week.
Some big news in the mortgage industry, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage surpasses 3%, which is the highest point since April of this year. As reported by Freddie Mac, when you couple this rise in rates with home price growth, it is going to keep some buyers out of the market, especially those shopping close to their limits.
This usually impacts first time home buyers who are trying to break into the market more than their more experienced counterparts, often in the more approachable price points.
2001 15th Street
Another trend I’ve been watching is the decrease in available condominium inventory. This has been going on for the past five weeks, the longest decrease I’ve seen since the exodus from condos back in spring of 2020. Condos and higher priced homes have been the shining stars of the market for the past few weeks, a trend the rest of the market is not going along with. I’ll be keeping an eye on this going forward as it may be a broader market indicator.
This week, 64 new properties were listed in the county, 10 more than last week.
Buyers ratified 67 contracts, five more than the week before, including 22 contracts on properties that had been on the market seven days or less.
In Arlington, we currently have 531 listed homes for sale, two more than last week. 140 of these options are detached homes. 69 are townhomes/semi-detached properties, and the remaining 322 are condominiums.
The average price for homes across all property types in Arlington right now is $772,807, while the median price is $587,000. On average, these homes have been on the market for 62 days, but the median is just 36.
A quick comparison to this week last year, there were 88 homes listed for sale and 71 ratified contracts. There were 542 properties available in Arlington.
1832 N Culpeper Street
Click here to search currently available Arlington real estate. If you see a home that you’re interested in purchasing, give us a call!
Call the Andors Real Estate Group today at (703) 203-1117 to talk more about buying or selling Arlington real estate. Below are eight new listings that I think you might like to check out.
Home Buyer's Tips and Tricks
Matthew, a Buyer's Agent for The Andors Group, offers his best homebuying tips and tricks
When you decide to buy a home in this market, things move fast. Oftentimes it feels like you're being dragged through a tornado just to get the home of your dreams. Because of this, it's critical to be prepared before you even tour a home.
The best way to be prepared for beating out the competition and making your life easier before closing? By being preapproved for a mortgage before you even tour a home.
What is Preapproval? And is it the Same as being Prequalified?
For those that don't know, preapproval is going through the process of getting a home loan before you find your home. While that might sounds backwards, getting preapproved sets your budget and lets sellers know you can afford to make the offer you say you can.
"But doesn't prequalification do the same thing?"
Yes and no. While prequalification does give you an idea of what homes are in your price range, there are reasons to put in the extra effort to get preapproved. Getting prequalified isn't necessarily bad, it just isn't as effective.
For one, preapproval is a much more thorough process. It takes more of your financial history into account (for more details, see below) and it has to be verified by a human being. While not incredibly common, there are situations where people get prequalified but then don't get approved for a mortgage. Along with that, preapproval offers a competitive advantage against those who are only prequalified.
What are the Advantages of Being Preapproved?
So why should I get preapproved before making an offer? In short, sellers can place more trust in your offer giving you an advantage over the competition. When deciding between multiple offers, sellers take more into account other than the price. For example, "Will this buyer actually buy my home, or will they run into an issue before closing and back out?"
Imagine you're selling your home: you have 2 offers in hand, both the same price, and you're trying to decide between them. You don't know either personally, so it's not like you can "trust" one more than the other. So how do you pick?
Most likely, it comes down to who can prove they can actually afford the home. In Virginia, some buyers will add a "financing contingency" which allows them to back out if their lender says they can't afford the home. This means you as the seller have taken your home off the market, away from potential buyers, just for someone to turn around and say they actually weren't prepared to take on a mortgage.
That sounds stressful, doesn't it? Selling your home to someone who maybe can't even afford it? Putting your home on the market already costs hours of your time and money, so having to sell a home twice is a hassle no one wants to deal with.
That's why if you can prove to a seller that you are financially qualified to make an offer, it can put you leaps and bounds ahead of the competition.
How Long Does It Take to Get Preapproved?
So how difficult is the process? Is it time consuming? Well, it all depends on which lender you opt to work with.
At The Andors Group, we prefer to work with local lenders like Team Hamandi who have repeatedly proven they can get the job done. Local lenders (with good reputations, be sure to check their reviews) are much easier to get ahold of than national brands which means you're more likely to be heard.
If you use Team Hamandi, we recommend you allot time for a one hour phone call. If you shop rates and opt for a national lender, be prepared for 2-3 hours in case you need to wait in line on the phone.
What Do I Need to Have Prepared?
There's a lot that goes into applying for a mortgage, so here's a brief rundown of what you'll need to make your life easier:
Legal Identification: Be sure to have your license and social security number on hand, just so your lender can be sure you are who you say you are.
Proof of Income: For the vast majority of people, you'll need to prepare a copy of your W-2 and your two most recent payroll stubs. If you're self employed, have your year to date profit and loss statement ready along with 2 years of records, ideally your 1099 tax reports.
Proof of Assets: You'll need to provide statements from everyone's accounts being used to apply for the mortgage (e.g. if you and your spouse are cosigning, you'll need both). Along with that, you'll also be asked for the most recent quarterly statement of your 401k along with 2 months of statements from your investment accounts, IRAs, and your Certificate of Deposits.
Current Debts: In order to qualify you for a mortgage, your lender will need to know your current debt to income ratio. To make this easier (and your appointment shorter) be sure to have a list of all your monthly debt payments. This includes everything from your car payments, to your student loans, your credit cards, and even other mortgages if you currently own a home. Also, be prepared for them to look into your credit history.
Other Records: Your lender will also ask how you plan to make your down payment. If you're using a gift, you may be asked for a "gift letter" illustrating where the money is coming from and explains you're not expected to pay it back. If you're currently renting, your lender will also ask for your previous 12 months of rent and the contact information for your landlord. While this doesn't apply to everyone, be aware that if you've applied for bankruptcy or have been recently divorced, you'll need to provide additional documentation showing how your current finances are affected.
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